KEYWORDS: Quality control, Calibration, Equipment, Data processing, Data archive systems, Large telescopes, Data storage, Data acquisition, Process control, Signal processing
We present the tool qcFlow designed to handle the quality control process at ESO’s LaSilla-Paranal Observatory in the ELT era. We highlight the top-level requirements and the way they are implemented in the tool. We also describe the supporting data flow software that allows the quality control process for a large suite of different astronomical instruments to be efficient and automated to a high degree.
Users of astronomical observatories rely on Exposure Time Calculators (ETC) to prepare their proposals and then their observations. The ETC is therefore a crucial element in an observatory’s data workflow and in particular is key to optimize the use of telescope times. This is also true for the La Silla Paranal Observatory and ESO has therefore embarked in a project to modernize its ETC, based on a python back-end and an angular-based front-end, while also providing a programmatic interface. This ETC 2.0 has now been implemented for all the new Paranal and La Silla instruments (CRIRES, ERIS, HARPS/NIRPS, and 4MOST) and work is ongoing to implement it for MOONS. All the current ESO La Silla and Paranal instruments will also be migrated progressively, and the first one has been FORS2. The new ETC2 is based on the instrument packages, which should allow in the future a smooth interaction with the Phase one and Phase two observation preparation tools. Moreover, the ETC 2.0 framework has recently been upgraded and makes now use of the NgRx/Store technology in the front-end.
The ESO Science Archive offers powerful interfaces through which any user can browse and download its content. The most recent developments [18,19,20,22] consist of the web-based archive science portal and a programmatic interface providing Virtual Observatory (VO) access to the Science Archive. The underlying databases offer a rich set of scientifically characterizing and VO-based metadata to facilitate data discovery [1, 15, and 23 in turn based on 2,5,6,8]. The query results provide access to the identified files together with related ancillary files and information (e.g., previews, weight-maps, data documentation, calibration reference files, etc.). Specific to the programmatic interface, users can explore the structure and content of the archive databases and scientific catalogue tables [4,21], and then write their own queries [3], for an empowered data discovery experience. When downloading the data, users can select the cutout service [16] to retrieve selected spatial and/or spectral subsets instead of the entire datasets. Authentication and authorization allow privileged users to extend their query and download capabilities beyond what is possible to anonymous users. The adoption of Virtual Observatory (VO) standards and technologies has been at the core of the development of the described interfaces. Here below we present the interfaces, and then an analysis of the costs and benefits of utilizing VO technologies in the ESO archive, as well as the lessons learned in the process.
KEYWORDS: Data archive systems, Observatories, Data processing, Lanthanum, Astronomy, Data centers, Decision support systems, Optical spheres, Cadmium sulfide, Signal processing
The archive of the La Silla Paranal Observatory is a powerful science resource for the ESO astronomical community. It stores both the raw data generated by all ESO instruments and selected processed (science-ready) data. We present the new capabilities and user services that have recently been developed in order to enhance data discovery and usage in the face of the increasing volume and complexity of the archive holdings. Future plans to extend the new services to processed data from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) are also discussed.
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